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Unit 4 - Comparatives

Comparatives


Unit 4 - Comparatives

Kelly: I wanted to buy a painting I saw that was as beautiful as a sunset.
Rick: Why didn't you buy it?
Kelly: It was as expensive as a car!
Rick: Wow! Was the art store as busy as it was five years ago?
Kelly: No, it wasn't as crowded as it was in the past.
Rick: Did somebody else buy the painting?
Kelly: Yes. I was as sad as my friend who was with me. We both wanted that painting.
Rick: I'm sorry. I know you'll find another painting as fast as lightning.

Comparatives - As...As

The structure "as...as" is used to compare things that are equal. For example:
- Jennifer is 163cm and Tony is 163cm. Jennifer is as tall as Tony.
- This house is 40 years old, that house is also 40 years old. This house is as old as that house.
- Bach's music is as good as Mozart's.
- Spring is as warm as fall.

"as...as" can also be used in negatives and questions. For example:
The Amazon isn't as long as the Nile.
The second movie wasn't as good as the first.
Is Japan as expensive as England?

"as...as" can also be used to show an extreme amount.
- "Eat as much as you want." The amount you eat is "equal" to the amount you want.
- Hurry! Run as fast as you can!
- Study as hard as possible.

Multiple quantities are expressed with "as...as". For example:
- I'm 22. My friend is twice as old as me. She's 44 years old.
- My aunt is three times as old as me. She's 66.
- And my grandmother is four times as old as me. She's 88 years old.
- Jenny is also 22 years old. She's the same as me.

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Grammar Exercises

The structure "as...as" is commonly used in similes - comparisons that show how two essentially unlike things are similar.

Complete the sentences below using the as...as similes in the box.

as white as snow as smooth as silk as slow as molasses as old as the hills as free as a bird
as nutty as a fruitcake as light as a feather as cold as ice as blind as a bat as black as coal

Example: On the first day of his vacation, the boy felt
Answer: On the first day of his vacation, the boy felt

1. The night was

2. Her hateful eyes were

3. Without my glasses, I am

4. The sheets on the bed looked

5. The bicycle looks heavy, but it feels

6. Paragliding is about the closest one can get to being

7. My computer is very fast at times, and at other times it is

8. When I was a child, a man of seventy seemed to me to be

9. After using our body lotion, your skin is guaranteed to feel

10. The man acted so oddly that his neighbors considered him to be

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Answers
1. = "as black as coal.";
2. = "as cold as ice.";
3. = "as blind as a bat.";
4. = "as white as snow.";
5. = "as light as a feather.";
6. = "as free as a bird.";
7. = "as slow as molasses.";
8. = "as old as the hills.";
9. = "as smooth as silk.";
10. = "as nutty as a fruitcake.";

Glen: I don't have much money today, but I want to buy many things!
Carrey: I have a few dollars. Will that help?
Glen: I think I need more money than that.
Carrey: The most I can give you is $10.00.
Glen: I know that my mom has a little money she can give me, too.
Carrey: I don't know a lot of people who have much money right now.
Glen: That's ok. I have less money than my friends!
Carrey: I'm sure you have a lot of friends that you can ask to help you.
Glen: I do, thanks.

Comparatives: Quantity

Quantifiers, or adjectives that show quantity, also have comparative and superlative forms.

Quantifier

much/many/a lot of
I have a lot of apples.
I don't have many apples.
I don't have much time.

few - They have a few potatoes.
little - We've got a little rice.

Comparative

more
I have more apples than you.
I don't have more apples than you.
I don't have more time than you.

fewer - We've got fewer potatoes.
less - They've got less rice.

Superlative

most
He has the most apples.
I don't have the most apples.
I don't have the most time.

fewest -You've got the least potatoes.
least - I've got the least rice.

Remember that:
- many and few are used with countable nouns.
- much and less are used with uncountable nouns.
- a lot of / lots of can be used with both countable and uncountable nouns.

You can also use the "as...as" structure to show equality. For example:
- We have as many candies as you.
- There are as few people in this town as that one.
- She's got as much water as we do.
- I've got as little time as you do.

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Grammar Exercises

Complete the sentences using the appropriate quantifier.

Example: Americans now own _____ dogs and more cats.
a) fewer b) less - The answer is: a) fewer
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1. _____ people live in a city than in a town.
a) More b) The most

2. Ethanol produces_____ pollution than gasoline.
a) the least b) less

3. There has been _____ news recently about obesity.
a) many b) much

4. There are _____ fish that are strictly carnivores or herbivores.
a) few b) little

5. Statistically, women are involved in _____ accidents than men.
a) fewer b) the fewest

6. I read that Taiwan has _____ motorcycles per capita in the world.
a) more b) the most

7. Many of the world's farms use _____ chemicals to help grow food.
a) lots of b) much

8. _____ children live in gun-owning households today than in 1980.
a) Fewer b) Little

9. Labor saving procedures are supposed to help you get your work done with ____ effort.
a) the fewest b) the least

10. In emergency situations, it is much preferable to have ____ knowledge than none at all.
a) the fewest b) little
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Answers

"a", "b", "b", "a", "a", "b", "a", "a", "b", "b"